Where I Am
by insane.lil.piratess
Summary: Living alone in Port Royal, lovestruck Arabella Smith never expects to see her friend, Jack Sparrow, again. Until, that is, she does. When Jack is jailed, she pays him a little visit and is lead on an adventure she never expected... PotC with BIG TWISTS!
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own Jack, Arabella or any of the characters. Thank Disney and Rob Kidd for that! Oh, and I do NOT own this song! Absolutely not, I'm not actually sure who does, but it's sung by Celine Dion... and not owned by me!**

**Author's Note:**** Okay, here it is! My NEWEST Sparrabella story! Basically, how screwed up Pirates of the Caribbean would get if Arabella Smith went down to visit Jack in jail after he saved Elizabeth from drowning. Thanks to nineteennintytwo for the idea to put the lyrics in! **

**EDIT: This chapter has been slightly edited since the 20th September 2009. I've also decided the rest of the story will be written in third person. See bottom A/N, if you want more proof! ;)**

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**_--  
Prologue  
--_**

I stopped. I stared at the world around myself. The world darkened by the night air and lingering shadows of Port Royal. My world. My name is Arabella Smith. And I have but one question for you: do you remember me? There is someone – somewhere out on the Seven Seas – I can only hope and wish still does. His name? Captain Jack Sparrow.

_Every night in my dreams  
I see you. I feel you.  
That is how I know you go on._

It had been years – decades – since I had last seen him, that night; my old captain, best friend... deep down, my first love. I hadn't seen him since I was sixteen. Was it right I was still absorbed in the past, hoping I would see Jack again one day? Don't answer that. I know it's not. It's stupid. Pathetic.

_Far across the distance  
And spaces between us_

But could I help myself, could I stop it? No. It was completely uncontrollable. Almost as if it wasn't my own decision. My heart had disconnected itself from my mind and was working alone. Yearning, wishing, hoping... And it hurt. It truly hurt.

However the thing is, I practised the things I will say to Jack if I ever met him again expecting to never do so deep down. What if I truly did meet him again? What would I say then? I can assure you, you will soon find out.

_You have come to show you go on._

Because I would see Jack again. Soon. Too soon. But standing on the beach of Port Royal that very midnight, I didn't know that. It was the first thing, but also the very last thing on my mind. I never expected to face him. I was wrong, so very, very wrong.

_Near, far, wherever you are  
I believe that the heart does go on  
Once more you open the door  
And you're here in my heart  
And my heart will go on and on_

So this is my story. My journey. How I once again reunited with my teenage allies and fell into a life threatening quest of piracy, un-dead creatures, monstrous lords and villainous enemies completely involved. A dangerous journey; something I had never expected to face after leaving my mother and La Fleur de la Morte.

I hope you're intrigued reading this right now. Are you wondering what will truly happen when I really meet Jack again? I can tell you for one thing, this story is both a one of romance but of also angst, horror and violence that will be forever scarred in my memory.

But love brings you through all that, right?

So this is it. The long and twisted tale of I, Arabella Smith, and my further encounters with my oldest and greatest friend – Captain Jack Sparrow.

_Love can touch us one time  
And last for a lifetime  
And never go till we're one..._

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**Author's Note: Okay, I really rushed that, but I think I did an okay job of it. Yes, I know it's in Belle's point of view – it was just something I thought I'd do after having so much fun with doing it in _Thinking of You_. AND IT WILL BE IN THIRD PERSON FOR THE REST OF THE STORY! Just so you know. **

**Well, let me know what you think. _Lost Memories_ and _My Name is Jack_ will be updated soon, I promise you! xD **


	2. William Turner the Younger

**Author's Note:**** Guten Tag, dearies! :) Just a heads up – the prologue has been very **_**slightly**_** edited, but it's not really worth re-reading. Also, the prologue was the only chapter to be written in Arabella's point of view. From now on, it's in third person :D**

**This chapter takes place when Elizabeth, Governor Swann, Norrington and Will arrive in Port Royal... so like eight years before the movie begins. Just so there's no confusion there! ;).**

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--_**  
Chapter I  
**__William Turner the Younger  
_--

Port Royal had been a place she was forced to call her home. Her run-down shack was a house she counted on to survive, though never looked forward to hiding behind its safe walls after a day in a job she could hardly call _work_. Arabella Smith sighed, tracing shapes into her table with one long finger knowing it would only be a moment before their invisible presence would be forgotten and she would be once again be trapped within a life which would never be completely hers.

Some would call her crazy if they were enlightened with her tale of love, loss and gallantry, and it would take a person ahead of their time to merely see it as the beginning of an adventure. Of course, Miss Smith knew there were but few – if any – people who were beyond their century within the walls of this town, therefore she wasn't hesitant to keep her secret locked in her throat.

She knew it was time to rise from her moulded position when various cries of "it's the governor!" and "they're here!" flooded from the gaps in her window frames and beneath the thin slither of her door. After the death of the previous, Port Royal had been assigned their next governor; and it was Arabella's duty as poor old Governor Draught's faithful servant to fulfil the position of maid to new-comer Weatherby Swann and his young daughter of twelve years, Elizabeth.

Once dressed and refreshed, long auburn curls entwined up into her cap, Arabella walked into the chilled streets, locking her door behind her.

New naval officers, clothed in straight uniforms of red and white patrolled the area – she rolled her eyes; sure, it was bound to be chaos for a while. By the time these men realized Port Royal was a town of no events where the most thrilling scene was Mr Brown the blacksmith occasionally putting on a unique performance of drunkenly dancing, this sudden excitement would die and everyone would return to their monotonous lives.

She listened to the ripple of the insignificant wind clocking her body as it scurried on through the atmosphere instead of the whispers and giggles of the gossiping women or the war-cries of the tackling children rolling at her ankles. Arabella had no interest for these people so they in return had no interest for her.

In all honesty, she wondered why on earth she still bothered with it all.

But that was the day it all changed. That was the day a certain someone would enter her life and would affect it forever...

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"Is there something you want, Miss?"

Stopped at the entrance to Fort Charles, Arabella glanced up from her feet and met the green eyes of a Navy captain she had been instructed to call 'Norrington'. With a slightly aggravated sigh she responded;

"I'm Governor Swann's new maid," she explained, briefly, "Arabella Smith." Norrington glanced at the hand she had outstretched, curiously. He for one was definitely not used to shaking the hand of a woman, let alone a strikingly beautiful one such as Arabella before him; besides the dirt grained to her cheeks and years of living a life she categorically did not enjoy beginning to affect her, she was a pretty maiden, no doubt.

After no response, she lowered it with an exasperated sigh. "I can show ye papers."

"No, no!" insisted Norrington quickly. He carefully shifted aside, allowing the maid to pass through the heavy gates and up the winding path to the Governor's mansion. She smiled gratitude towards the young man before her and muttered a small 'thank-you' in addition as she made her way past him.

"Good day, Miss Smith," he called after her. With this, the corners of her lips convulsed up into a slight smile as she glanced back over her shoulder;

"It's Arabella."

She felt his penetrating glance on her back as she dragged her feet behind her and almost felt her soul uplift with this; there was something strikingly familiar about James Norrington that she liked in a strange, outlandish way. Something she couldn't quite place.

The mansion was busy, so it appeared, and proved to be even busier so once Arabella slipped through the open double doors. Servants flocked back and forth, some she recognised from her time under Governor Draught's employment and some fresh faces, brought with the Swann's straight from London. Scanning back and forth, she eventually spotted the man in which she assumed was most likely Weatherby Swann and approached him slowly, hoping he would perhaps recognise her and therefore avoid the awkward introduction stage.

"Excuse me, sir?" she started. The Governor looked up from the papers in his hands and offered a smile. "My name is Arabella Smith," she continued, "I am to be your maid. Governor Draught informed me you would take me on board before his death."

She bit her lip; her usual speak of 'ye' and 'yer' would have to be precluded. Her previous employer may not have minded, but Arabella found it best to hold her breath; not all men of riches could overlook the tongue of a pirate, especially when the speaker appeared as a woman.

"Ah yes," Governor Swann's eyes sparkled as he grinned, as if Arabella was bearing him a cake instead of an employment. "I've heard a lot about you, Miss Smith."

"Oh, I assure you, sir, you haven't heard everything about me," she smiled one-sidedly back; to think, if anyone in this town beside her knew of her past, she surely wouldn't be made as welcome, or declared as the late governor's most favoured maid. In fact, she wasn't entirely sure she would be welcome behind the walls of Port Royal _at all_.

"That's right, Miss Smith," he agreed with a smile of his own. "And I am intent to find out where your areas of expertise lie. Therefore, I'm sure you wouldn't mind getting straight to work?"

Arabella was unhesitant to nod. "Of course, sir," she responded on the spot. Working shifts had been the only thing that could successfully take her mind away from her dreams and distant realities. Sitting around the house in a day dream would be but a tragedy, as she would always open her eyes and see the life in which she didn't belong. "I'll start right away. What is it you wanted me to do?"

Governor Swann launched into a list of chores, but after a mere moment, Arabella already found her mind wandering. Her glinting brown eyes scanned the room, noting every movement by every servant and seeming to hear every word breathed from every pair of pale pink lips.

And it was at the sight of two young children she stopped listening completely.

One wore a pretty blue gown, her golden locks curled to her shoulders and skin like porcelain. It didn't take a genius, Arabella figured, to realise this was the daughter of the Governor, Miss Elizabeth Swann. The girl, twelve years old at least, was smiling and laughing with a quieter boy who had his back effectively turned to Arabella. It was only when he turned around that she knew _exactly_ who he was.

"Miss Smith?" Swann pressed, drawing back Arabella's attention. "Have you got all of that, my dear?"

"Oh, yes," she lied, quickly although was swift to change the subject; "tell me, sir, who is that boy?" She directed her eye line back to the two youths with Governor Swann mirroring it. He made a short sound of recognition before replying:

"That would be a mister William Turner," yes, that did it. _Definitely Bill's son_, Arabella's mind whispered and she found herself nodding along as the governor's explanation continued; "we found him as the only survivor of a shipwreck on our crossing from England. I see my daughter has taken quite a liking to him."

The maiden smiled lightly as Miss Elizabeth touched her hand to Will's bicep and the Turner boy blushed, curving his deep brown orbs towards the ground, feet worming beneath him.

"I think it's rather sweet," Arabella stated, then hastily adding, "sir."

A disapproving grunt came from her right hand side which she took as her signal to press her lips firmly shut.

"He won't be staying with us," the governor mumbled, more to himself than to his maid, "I shall be sending him away with Miss... Estrella, is it? Yes, I hear Mr. Brown is in need of an apprentice and Mr. Turner here should fit the drop description perfectly."

Arabella's ears instantly pricked up. "Would ye like me to take him, sir?" she chirped, her attempt at clean speech slipping much to her own disappointment. Luckily, the governor seemed too wrapped in his daughter's flirting and sneaky grins towards this boy to notice a slight grammatical error on his maid's part.

"No, no, you have enough on your plate, Miss Smith," he decided. "I can't be worrying my best maid with the welfare of a homeless child."

"As ye wish, sir."

"Then you are dismissed," he offered her another smile of kindness. "Welcome back to Fort Charles."

Ignoring him blatantly, Arabella began to walk away frustrated with the outcome of the conversation. She felt her heart sink to the pit of her stomach and her level of liking for Port Royal's newest governor descend greatly. She knew, as selfish as it was, she needed this William Turner boy more than anyone could possibly imagine and every time spent with him would be her secret desire. For, she had speedily concluded, he was the only way she could access the remainder of her past.

And it was the past Arabella needed to live the future; live it happily, at least.

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**Author's Note:**** Update :) Heh, this is getting exciting-ish... I can't wait to get into the movies and toss things around! **

**I was meant to upload this yesterday but my dad distracted me with DVD box sets of Blackadder and series 3 of My Name is Earl that he got from some stall with major price reductions... so yay! **

**Anyways, I don't actually have a plan for this story. I've just decided to write as the ideas come to me... which means a few chapters down the line I'll probably get writer's block or something, but who knows; maybe a plot idea will come to me before then! :D Please review! **

**Next chapter; we skip forward a few years for Norrie's promotion and, while we're at it, we get a look in at Belle's oh so mysterious past. Heh. Well I guess I've got a BIT of a plan after all ;)**


	3. An Invitation

**Author's Note: ****Quick notice: This chapter takes place eight years after the last and two days before Norrington's promotion ceremony, but the paragraphs in italics are various snippets from Arabella's past in a bit of a random order. Some parts are VERY important so pay attention, or else ;).**

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Chapter II  
**__An Invitation  
__**--**_

_From the place where Arabella now stood, dark clouds, pouring rain and the rumble of thunder was all she could see, feel and sense around her. Salty tears ran freely down her cheeks as she waved into the fog, leaving the one she loved behind before her mother's ship disappeared completely, taking her somewhat un-willingly away with it. She felt the bodies of sailor's behind her fifteen year-old self and knew they were all watching as she silently sobbed._

"_I'll never forget you, Jack," she breathed into the mist as she saw her love's figure fade to nothing._

_It was suddenly a few months down the line and she faced the same predicament. Two arms were curled around her waist but all she urged to do was shake them off and lunge into Jack's. He was making his steady way down the line, uttering goodbyes as he was to leave again. And this, Arabella was forced to believe, would be the last time she would see him. Billy Turner – the man she presumed she loved – was taking her away to North Carolina and as far as her mother was concerned, they were to start a family there._

_But standing there as Jack approached, she knew that wasn't the life for her._

"_Belle," Jack smiled, "it's been fun, love."_

_She choked on her tears as he reached for her hand, placing a small kiss to her knuckles. "Wh-what if I never see ye again?" she stammered, trying to resist worming from Billy's grasp. Her eyes threatened to give way, but she sucked in a breath and demanded her tears to stay put. _

_Jack's answer – accompanied with a charming grin – was simple; "I highly doubt that will happen, love." And as quick as he was there, he was gone._

_Years had passed by the time Arabella's next vision came to be. She sat, cradling her newborn child with Bill nowhere near her side. She stroked her boy's cheek, desperate to feel a motherly love towards him, but nothing came. Beginning to feel frustration, she held baby Liam closer to her chest and squeezed her eyes frantically shut. Nothing. A single tear escaped her brown orbs and rolled down her skin, both mother and child instantly unsettled. Little Liam stirred in her arms and all she could think was that he didn't want her either. Though she had experienced the pain and hard labour of childbirth, she knew, somewhere embedded deep inside her, that he wasn't her son and would never be, no matter how hard she tried for him. _

_And it only took a few months until he was dead._

_He had died in his sleep. The doctor announced it and Billy fell to his knees in hysteria. But Arabella, as guilty as it made her feel, could experience nothing but relief. She had been a terrible mother – she had tried, oh, she had tried – but Liam was not hers and she knew it. Perhaps he had looked as she did and had smiled like his father, but where his soul truly belonged, Arabella herself had to admit, she had no idea._

"_At least," she breathed, clutching her husband's hand, "he's in a better place."_

"_Why did ye cry, Billy?" a voice she recalled as her own suddenly snapped. A new scenario and a new scene, came flooding to mind, replacing the sorrowful sit by baby Liam's bedside. "Why did ye cry at the death of our baby when ye _already had a son?" _A crash and a bang came as she flung Bill's belongings from the window. They pounded against the dusty ground below, bursting into smithereens as the couple's love had just done._

_And Bill, sad as it was, had nothing to utter. An ashamed lower of his head seemed to say everything Arabella needed to know._

_So, desperate to wield a broken heart, she ran. She ran and she ran until she could run no more, until her pulse was drumming in her ears and her throat was cheated out of all moisture. Aching and breaking piece by piece inside, all she could do was run further and further. If she never saw Billy Turner again, it would suit her perfectly. And where, Arabella asked herself, was her port of call?_

"_Jamaica," she decided, "Port Royal, Jamaica." _

She awoke, sweat teeming down her hairline. Without the aid of a mirror, Arabella knew she looked dreadful; her long auburn curls were glued to her neck as the warmth of the room made her body sweat further and her face was soggy – wet with the tears her past always provoked. As she touched two long fingers to her lips, she realised they were quivering.

Everything was so vivid; within the singular millisecond her eyes switched from closed to open, she swore she could visualise the welcoming face of Jack Sparrow smirking back at her and even hear the stir of her baby, William 'Liam' Turner past the nearest plastered wall.

Removing the bed clothes with a shaking hand, she slipped from her sleep and grasped the cool material of her dressing gown. Bare footed, she crept downstairs without lighting a candle; the dark was comforting and secretive. She liked the dark just a little more than she liked the light and favoured it at times such as these. Slipping into the un-tucked chair sitting at her kitchen table, a familiar process of thoughts began to unravel behind her cranium and Arabella found her defences dropping and self not even resisting to deny thinking along.

Over the years, she had learnt to forgive Bill Turner, of course she had.

She had befriended the son she found herself fuming over years before and wept for days after hearing of her previous husband's terrible death. _If only,_ she constantly found herself pondering, _I'd let him know I cared._

It had been eight long years since the Swann's departure from England and Arabella cared not to count on her fingers the years passed since this occasion. It was only she knew such a fact as there were years she _had_ been counting; not the years since her wedding day or the date of her son's accidental death, but the years since she had been forced to leave the side of the one she wished she had never done so;

Jack Sparrow.

Resting her weary head to the scratched oak table, Arabella closed her eyes, sure of but only one thing; despite the fact it had been so many decades since their last meeting and so many things had happened in which could have effectively diverted her mind from such thoughts, she knew he was the one she loved and at such a moment in time, she would do anything to get back.

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"Miss Smith?" Norrington's voice chased her as she swerved along the winding pathways, desperate to return to another day's work after her sleep-deprived night and the beginning of a minor depression. "Miss Smith, I was hoping to have a word?"

With a maddened sigh, her snappy response of "what?" reached Norrington's stunned expression before she could face it herself. Breathing a steady breath, she tried once again; "yes, sir?"

"I believe you've heard of my promotional ceremony taking place on Thursday?"

"Yes, yes, I have," she replied, steadily, calling a short "congratulations to you, sir," over her shoulder before attempting to walk on. Unfortunately, Norrington's throat protested and beckoned her back. Resisting the powerful press to roll her eyes, Arabella shifted herself around once more.

"Yes?"

"I was hoping you would come along," Norrington offered. The maid's auburn eyebrows arched in curiosity and dark orbs seemed to beg 'go on'. "I believe there will be a surprise for you there. Governor Swann will be happy to give you all of the details, I'm sure," the navy man continued, crossing his arms formally behind his back. A small grin flickered to his lips in which Arabella failed not to miss.

"Thank ye, sir. I'll do my best to come along," she nodded, hoping her interest wasn't completely painted across her face. Exchanging their hasty 'good days', the two figures parted ways and Arabella's mind was left to reel; what surprise could such a man have to offer?

_I suppose_, she thought, the corners of her lips arching into a smile, _we'll just have to see.  
_

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**Author's Note:**** Yes, I suppose we will, Belle ;) For once... I have nothing to say... except that dream sequence was a little bugger to write :) I couldn't seem to link the different parts together reasonably, so I hope it wasn't too confusing for anyone. **

**Aussi, would people be willing to spread the word of this story? I'm going to be updating it pretty regularly so I'd like just a couple more readers and reviewers ;) Thankies very much for reading! I'll try and have this updated soon! :D**


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